You Before Him

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE:

They say that surrounding yourself with amazing people, your life is bound to be just as amazing as them.

So, as I walked down the aisle, looking around at all my close friends and family, I couldn't help but feel like the luckiest girl in the whole world.

As I looked to my right, I could see my dad smiling brightly as I held onto his arm. As I looked to my left, I could see the happiness on my friends faces as they watched me be the happiest I had ever been. And as I looked forward, I could see my future.

My future consisted of a brown-haired boy with the most contagious smile and the cutest dimples. His eyes that held all of the stars and galaxies in them. Just him in general, my future that made my heart speed up and made me feel loved like never before.

My future that I loved with all my being.

"Christopher," my father smiled as he held onto my hand for as long as he could, "I'm trusting you to care and love for my daughter just as much as I do. To make her the happiest girl on the whole planet and remind her of just how loved she is. Can you promise to do that?"

"I promise," Chris smiled as he looked at me with so much love in his eyes.

"Well, I guess it's time I hand you over," my father smiled as tears brimmed his eyes, "I love you so much Bethany."

"I love you too," I smiled, feeling tears brim my eyes as he placed a kiss onto my forehead before placing my hand into Chris's.

"Hi," Chris whispered as he held onto both of my hands so delicately.

"Hi," I smiled back, watching as his face lit up.

"You look beautiful," he told me as he looked me up and down, making the blush on my face become more noticeable.

"And you look just as handsome as always, maybe even more," I laughed slightly, watching Chris's smile grow brighter.

"You finally complimented me," he chuckled, "I can get used to this."

"Are you ready?" the priest asked as he watched Chris and I talk quietly.

"More than ready," Chris smiled as he held my hands tighter.

"We are gathered here today to celebrate with Christopher and Bethany as they proclaim their love and commitment to the world. We are gathered to rejoice, with and for them, in the new life they now undertake together.

Christopher and Bethany, the relationship you enter into today must be grounded in the strength of your love and the power of your faith in each other. To make your relationship succeed it will take unending love. It will take trust, to know in your heart that you truly want what is best for one another and to learn and grow together. It will take faith, to go forward without knowing what the future holds. If you both come freely, and understand the responsibility and work involved to make your relationship thrive, and are committed to not only each other but your family.

It's time for the vows."

Chris let out a shaky breath as he began to say his vows.

"Bethany Anderson. Just saying your name makes me feel like a thousand fireworks are erupting at the same time. I'm sure many of my friends are wondering what on earth happened to the cool Chris and are asking who this new cheesy guy is. Truth is, I don't know who he is either. What I do know is that he only came to existence when you came into my life and if that means that he's going to be sticking around while you're in my life, well, I couldn't be happier to have him be a part of this.

I still remember you freaking out over not writing your vows and asking me if I had written mines, I want you to know that I wasn't lying. What I didn't tell you was that I wrote these vows right after I got home from our first date. Is that weird? Maybe. Even though we only had two months to truly get to know each other, it felt like a lifetime. A lifetime where I learned that you hate onions and shrimp, how you're terrified by zombies and spiders. I learned that you could re-read Harry Potter for the twentieth time and still react like it's your first time reading it.